About InfoKemarau
Brief History of the InfoKemarau Website Development
Jabatan Pengairan dan Saliran (JPS) is the agency responsible for water resource management and monitoring hydrological drought, playing a role in disseminating drought information to various agencies and water-related departments, as an early warning and preparation for facing drought. The role of JPS in hydrological monitoring, dissemination of forecasts, and drought warnings is specifically explained in the following directives/circulars/guidelines:
- Arahan NADMA No. 1: Dasar dan Mekanisme Pengurusan Bencana Negara (NADMA, 2024).
- Peraturan Tetap Operasi Pengendalian Bencana Kemarau (MKN, 2011)
- Garis Panduan Pengendalian Bencana Kemarau dan Musim Kering (JPS, 2025)
The drought monitoring program has been implemented since early 2001. It was established following the drought event in 1998 that affected a large number of residents in the Klang Valley, Malaysia. Following this event, JPS took the initiative to develop the InfoKemarau website with the aim of helping relevant agencies make early preparations for facing drought.
Currently, JPS has monitor 51 rain stations, 24 flow rate stations, and 49 water level and reservoir storage. The data required for Infokemarau includes hydrological data such as rainfall, water levels, and streamflow. The hydrological stations throughout Malaysia are monitored daily through the JPS telemetric network. Through the Mesyuarat Jawatankuasa Pengurusan Bencana Pusat for the year 2024, JPS has been mandated to report the storage status of all reservoirs in Malaysia for the purpose of monitoring hydrological drought.
The information on this website is constantly being improved, with stations and additional features being added from time to time to more accurately reflect the drought situation in Malaysia.
The features of this website are based on ‘non-structural measures’' approach such as: • Monitoring current river flow rates, water levels, and reservoir storage
- Rainfall distribution and water levels
- Identifying drought-risk areas through the 'Standard Precipitation Index Map'
- Awareness raising / capacity building
- Dissemination of information and drought forecasts
Objectives
- To disseminate the status of water resources online
- To provide early warnings about potential drought
- As a technical reference related to drought status
Methodology
Data rainfall from selected stations and hydrological analysis determine whether an area is drier than usual and vice versa. The percentage deviation from the long-term mean (LTM) for the amount of rainfall over a 3-month period is used as an indicator of the condition of the watershed.
Hydrological Drought
Hydrological drought is best defined as a deficiency in the supply of surface and groundwater, such as reservoir levels and storage, groundwater levels, river flow, and precipitation. Hydrological drought conditions occur when river flow or reservoir levels and storage decrease continuously. This situation can be defined through the following changes:
- a) River Flow
When the low flow exceeds the 5-year Average Return Interval (ARI) continuously for 3 months, then a drought event is considered to have occurred.
- b) Reservoir Level and Storage
When the water level continues to decrease and the reservoir storage falls below the normal level for 2 consecutive months.